Opposite page, top: The Rees Jones-designed golf course at Kohanikai; bottom: The Beach Bar This page, top: The Beach Restaurant; bottom: The Clubhouse entrance NOV E M B E R - D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 4 51 Trying not to fog my mask, I remained focused on Kanuha as he transported the octopus up for suction playtime around my arm before releasing it back to its watery bed. It’s a magical, coral-draped world below the ocean surface where Kanuha, the Adventure Team Manager at Kohanaiki, located along a 1.5 mile stretch of Hawaii’s Kona Coast between the Kona International Airport and Kailua-Kona, pinches himself daily at living his dream job educating members about the ocean habitat, coaching them on how to surf, stand-up paddle or scuba, or escorting island hiking adventures. What he and his “A–Team” of instructors do is at the very core of the Big Island’s first new development of its kind in nearly a decade. “The ocean is a big part of this place, and to get people comfortable being in that environment is a very important aspect of Kohanaiki,” says Joe Root, who left CordeValle Resort in the Silicon Valley in 2006, and returned to the Big Island to join the Kohanaiki team. “We are not really selling as much as we are sharing the experience.” Supplementing the Pacific Ocean as a compelling drawing card to fuel Kohanaiki’s real estate sales, is a mouth-watering menu of distinguishing amenities to bolster a healthy and sustainable lifestyle, including an organic garden, spa and fitness center, tennis, private golf carts and a 60,000-square-foot clubhouse to be finished in December 2015, complete with a bowling alley and movie theater. The entire package is at your disposal when purchasing one (or more) of the 420 units (at build-out in eight to ten years), consisting of lots ranging from $2 to $14 million and the existing custom three- and four-bedroom Hale residences starting at $2.5 million and available for Hale Club members up to 45 nights a year. There are many perks that come with membership at Kohanaiki, but perhaps the preeminent jewel is exclusive access to the only Rees Jonesdesigned 18-hole golf course in Hawaii (he also redesigned his father’s course at Mauna Kea on the Big Island). While many of the state’s courses boast prime ocean views, Jones was given an exceptional piece of land from Mother Nature. “Nowhere else in Hawaii will you find six sequential oceanfront holes,” says Jones, known as “The Open Doctor” for redesigning many major championship venues. “And the cool thing is it sort of finishes like the end of Cypress Point, with the finishing hole going back inland to create quite a crescendo.” In fact, the par-3, 16th hole at the 7,329-yard (might consider one of the other four shorter sets of tees) layout is so close to the ocean that the right greenside bunker is actually part of the public beach. “We also had to be careful with preserving the hieroglyphics and sacred pools that covered the grounds, but it turned out to be a positive since they served as unusual features that worked with the flow of the course,” says Jones. The first 11 holes weave through the interior of the project before making what Marty Keiter, Director of Golf at Kohanaiki, refers to as “the best lefthand turn in golf” that leads to the par-5, 12th hole tee box that affords a view of an ocean backdrop in the distant horizon behind the green 637 yards away. In between, “You get to see the ocean, smell it and hear it.” But those aren’t the only senses on stage at Kohanaiki. Taste also plays a very important role with the appearance of three “golf hales” (comfort stations) located at strategic vantage points throughout the course. While not exactly an enticement to expedite pace of play (a non-factor at Kohanaiki), these air-conditioned, 19th hole-on-steroid shelters are the place to hang out for indulging on a premium assortment of healthy snacks to candies, housemade beef jerky and ice cream sandwiches or the prerequisite Hawaiian amenity—a Mai Tai machine. Feel free to play through. While taking advantage of a links reprise on the front porch rocker with a refreshment in hand and eyes fixated on the Big Blue, I couldn’t help but think, if I were an octopus, “I’d ask my friends to come and see an octopus’s garden with me” at Kohanaiki, where even a multi-armed marine mollusk deserves to live the dream.
NVLife_NovDec_2014
To see the actual publication please follow the link above